HFA Board of Advocate’s Humanities at Work Fellow 2026-2028

Awards and Fellowships

About  

This new fellowship recognizes and supports a faculty member who is passionate about and committed to preparing students in the College of Humanities and Fine Arts for careers upon graduation. The HFA Board of Advocate’s Humanities at Work Fellow will act as a strategic partner to the Dean and the Associate Dean for Undergraduate Education and Student Success to support student career development in HFA, create internship opportunities and pathways, and prepare HFA undergraduate students for employment in the 21st century.   

Eligibility   

  1. Tenure track or non-track member of the HFA faculty.  
  2. Hold the rank of tenured Associate Professor, Senior Lecturer, or above.   

Applications  

Interested applicants should submit a cv, letter of recommendation from their chair, and a 500-word proposal of a high impact project, program, workshop, training, etc. focused on preparing students for careers in the humanities and fine arts. The proposal should include a 2-year timeline and metrics that measure impact and success. While proposed activities may begin by focusing on a specific department or discipline, the successful applicant will propose an activity that is 1) scalable to departments across HFA and 2) sustainable after the fellowship concludes. The goal is to establish successful programs that are incorporated into HFA’s strategic vision of educating career-minded students ready for the job market on day one.    Apply on the UMass InfoReady platform.

Support  

To support this important work, the 2026-2028 HFA Board of Advocates’ Humanities at Work Fellow will receive, each academic year, a $5,000 stipend for work performed during the academic year, a $3,000 summer stipend to support summer work and activities, a $5,000 programming budget, and $1,500 for professional development related to this position, as well as course releases (2 for tenure-track faculty and 3–4 for non-tenure-track faculty). The total funding over the two-year fellowship period is $29,000.  The programming budget can be used for several activities including taking students on trips to visit business; workshops, course materials, and supplies; student leadership assessment; career readiness and training; interview preparation, resume building and writing; networking training, etc. This position will also be supported by 5 hour per week intern which will provide valuable career preparation for an HFA student.   

This is a rotating fellowship. The initial appointment is 2 years with the possibility for a 1–2-year renewal upon successful review and budget. At the end of the fellowship, the faculty member will relinquish the title and stipend, and the fellowship will open again for new applicants and ideas.      

Timeframe and Review  

Applications are due on the UMass InfoReady platform by March 15, 2026.  Members of the HFA Board of Advocates and the HFA Dean’s Office will make a recommendation to the Dean. The successful applicant will be notified in mid-April 2026.   

Questions  

For questions, please contact Nancy Noble, nnoble [at] arthist [dot] umass [dot] edu (nnoble[at]arthist[dot]umass[dot]edu), Associate Dean for Undergraduate Education and Student Success.